Amazon staff ‘peeing in bottles’

AMAZON warehouse staff are peeing in bottles because toilets are too far away.

One ex-worker said staff fear getting into trouble for taking too long away from the job.

The warehouse measures 65,000 square meters and some of the 1,200 workers face a ten minute walk to two toilets on the ground floor of the four-storey building, according to The Sun.

Packages pass through a scanner at an Amazon fulfilment centre. Picture: AP

Undercover investigator James Bloodworth said: "For those of us who worked on the top floor, the closest toilets were down four flights of stairs."

Mr Bloodworth, who worked ten-hour shifts as a picker selecting goods for dispatch, walked ten miles a day in the job to research for a book on low-wage Britain.

He claimed workers were continually monitored for time wasting by supervisors.

It meant workers operated a "toilet bottle" system.

Mr Bloodworth said: "People just peed in bottles because they lived in fear of being ­disciplined over 'idle time' and ­losing their jobs just because they needed the loo."

He said the warehouse in Rugeley, Staffs, is like a prison with airport-style security ­scanners where workers are checked and patted down in case they steal.

Amazon employees reportedly needed to use four flights of stairs to go to the bathroom. Picture: Supplied

Hoodies and sunglasses were banned along with mobile phones as a ­security measure, he said.

An Amazon spokesman said: "Amazon ensures all of its associates have easy access to toilet facilities which are just a short walk from where they are working.

"Amazon provides a safe and positive workplace for thousands of people across the UK with competitive pay and benefits from day one.

"We have a focus on ensuring we provide a great environment for all our employees and last month Amazon was named by LinkedIn as the 7th most sought after place to work in the UK and ranked first place in the US."

This article first appeared in The Sun and has been reproduced here with permission.